A. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates primarily to faucets which control the mix of hot and cold water. More particularly, the invention relates to faucets of the foregoing type wherein the flow path of the hot and cold water can be reversed, and/or where the full hot limit of the valve can be easily adjusted.
B. Description Of The Art
It is often convenient to have faucets in two different rooms placed on opposite sides of a common wall so that both can use common supply pipes. In this situation the cold water supply pipe which is on the right for the first faucet is on the left for the other. If a single type of valve is used at both installations, expensive crossover plumbing is often employed (e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 3,823,737). If not, the plumber sometimes carries two different types of valves.
In the alternative, adapters have been used in order to reverse the flow of hot and cold water through the valves. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,378,029; 4,676,270; and 4,804,011. A problem with many of the prior art adapter units is that they are of a multicomponent type, and in some instances are interconnected to one of the flow plates in the faucet housing. In other instances, complicated special seals or attachment devices are required in order to position the reversing mechanism. In other instances, the adapter is positioned internally in the faucet housing requiring significant labor for it to be taken apart in order to effect the desired reversing feature.
Thus, it can be seen that a need exists for an improved reversing system.
Another problem in the art is that of adjustably setting the full hot limit of a valve that has a stem that both pivots and rotates. This is desirable to conserve energy or to set the valve maximums at limits most comfortable to the user. It is desirable to do this without requiring disassembly of valve components and with minimal parts. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,387,880; 4,813,455 and 4,887,642.